Football fans at Colchester United v Oldham last Saturday showed their support for the Roman Circus appeal by donating £1084.

Fans were treated to the sight of a Roman charioteer parading around the edge of the pitch with this two horses. Professional film stuntman Andy Butcher donated his time to help the appeal make an impact with football fans.

He was joined by a band of volunteers with buckets collecting from the fans, together with the doughty Jess Jephcott in full Roman soldier costume.

The crowd was very supportive and many of them wished the volunteers well with the campaign.

On the day we were delighted to hear that football legend Terry Venables had given his support to the Roman Circus Appeal.

So, thank you to Colchester United for all the help and support. They’ve been featuring the Roman Circus appeal on their big screen at all their home matches this year. And thank you to the many people who gave on the day.

Press and media should be there, so come and help us show how many people want to see this appeal succeed.

No, it’s not an announcement that we’ve reached our target (I wish!), but it is good news.

Try and get to the Sergeants’ Mess for 11.15am (on Saturday 6 February) as the photo call is scheduled for 11.30. All are welcome!

Entrance to the site is a little tricky, given there is a building site nearby, but you should be able to spot the group (or crowd!) there when you arrive. Do note that the ground is usually pretty muddy!

As many of you will know, this means: “Don’t just applaud, throw money”.

So, thank you for showing your support so far by coming to our events, putting up posters, buying merchandise, joining our Facebook group, and telling your friends, family and colleagues about us. Such support is wonderful, and has been noticed by many in Colchester and further afield.

But, this appeal succeeds or fails depending on whether we raise enough money by 28 February. If you’ve applauded the appeal’s impact so far, please also throw some money at the appeal.

You can give online at CharityChoice (where the Co-op Bank handles transactions securely, and doesn’t charge for doing so), or you can send a cheque payable to “Colchester Archaeological Trust” and post it to Camulodunum, 12 Lexden Road, Colchester, CO3 3NF.

Thank you. Now, we just need to find a statue with the phrase “gratias tibi” on it.

The campaign has attracted widespread interest and support, and not just from Colchester. Read the campaign’s Facebook page and you’ll see that people in many other countries are showing their support.

This is a wonderful achievement for a volunteer-run campaign, and shows what people can achieve if they see a need.

Thank you to everyone who has given or helped in some way. There is more to come of course as we try to raise the same sum again in roughly the same time period.

If you work for a company running such a programme, then do please consider making use of it when making a donation to the appeal. The appeal is for a registered charity, Colchester Archeaological Trust.

Gallery Schomberg at 12 St John’s Street, Colchester, will run tombola for the appeal on Saturday, the last day of its exhibition and sale. They will also be serving hot Indian chai for the occasion together with home made almond cookies.

Are you organising a fundraising event or activity for the appeal? Do let us know and we’ll feature it on this website.

This Thursday evening (14th January) Colchester Archaeological Trust will be presenting its vision for the Roman Circus.

Actor Tony Gardner, star of BBC TV’s award-winning comedy Lead Balloon, will host the event in the Mayor’s Parlour at Colchester’s Town Hall. Guests will hear of the plans for the Roman Circus and donations will be encouraged.

Entry is by invitation only as space is limited. Please apply for an invitation to Isobel Merry, Head of Fundraising, on 0789 1234 274. Guests are invited to arrive from 7pm for 7.30pm.

Thanks to the generosity of the people of Colchester and further afield, £80,000 has been donated since the appeal was launched at the beginning of December. We have until 31 January 2010 to find the rest. It is hoped that donations made on the night will help fill the £120,000 gap.

Speakers at this special event will include guests from the world of archaeology, history and heritage including:

• Philip Crummy. Director of the Colchester Archaeological Trust
This is a special opportunity to discover the plans and ideas for Britain’s only known Roman Circus from the man who discovered the Roman circus.

• Sven Wombwell, ITV’s This Morning Garden designer will reveal his ideas for the design for the garden where the eight Roman Circus starting gates are located.

• Philip Wise, Heritage Manager at Colchester Museums

The Colchester Archaeological Trust has been given until the end of January 2010 by developers to buy the land containing the 8 starting gates of Britain’s only known Roman chariot racing circus. The gates lie within the front garden of the former garrison sergeants’ mess at the northern end of Abbey Field. This distinguished Victorian Grade 2 listed building is otherwise destined to become private housing, closing off public access to the most important section of this unique archaeological site.

The Save the Roman Circus Appeal is an initiative of destination Colchester, a community interest company, together with Colchester Archaeology Trust. The appeal is to raise funds to buy the Sergeants’ Mess building and the garden so it can be a celebration of our town’s unique Roman heritage, somewhere for people who live, work and visit Colchester to enjoy and learn about our historic past. The building will provide a new and highly appropriate home for the Colchester Archaeological Trust.

Working with local councils and county councils, the aim is to transform the majority of the circus site into an archaeological park. Where possible, earth mounds will be built to show its great size and provide a view not seen in Britain for at least 1,600 years.

The purpose of the fundraising evening is to inform, educate, entertain and encourage donations to save Colchester’s Roman Circus.

Upon the successful outcome of the Appeal we intend to honour donors’ names, in perpetuity, on plaques inside the refurbished Sergeants’ Mess.

Like many, we believe that ‘Roman Colchester’ including the Roman circus, the Roman walls, the Temple of Claudius, the Roman theatre and other sites, should become a national visitor attraction, giving the town a strong identity, bringing business into the centre and helping to revitalise Britain’s oldest recorded town.

We are most grateful to the Mayor of Colchester, Councillor Henry Spyvee, for the use of the Mayor’s Parlour.

Colchester’s Roman circus is the only known Roman chariot racing track found in the UK, and this reflects Colchester’s status as the Roman capital of Britain. In Roman times, chariot racing was an incredibly popular sport, much like football is today. Colchester has a wealth of Roman architecture most of which is simply dotted around the town, with no cohesive, dedicated information or interpretation.

Currently the area of land where the circus has been discovered is owned by a large property developer, who has agreed to sell the vandalised Victorian building and a portion of land which houses the starting gates for the arena, back to the campaign group. We wish to buy the land and the building, creating a visitor centre, to provide a focal point and a starting point for a Roman history trail around the town. This would mean that this unique piece of Roman Britain could be preserved for ever, and be enjoyed by Colchester residents and visitors alike for many years to come.

The developers have agreed to sell the site to the group for £750,000 and have given us a deadline of January 31 2010. We have managed to raise £500,000, so we need to raise £250,000 to finance our project. Will you help us?